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Thursday, October 1, 2015

A Conversation #withMalala @MalalaFund

This summer, I was given the chance to see a sneak preview of the documentary He Named Me Malala. This is the documentary that shares the story of Malala Yousafzai and her work to bring equality and education to girls all over the world. Here is a trailer for the movie.

This movie was simply amazing. It moved me. It showed the strength and courage of a young lady who is determined to make the world a better place even though her life has been threatened. This is a movie I cannot wait to show to my students. I really want to pair it up with Persepolis. The documentary was just beautifully shot and it really showed the other side of Malala that you do not see in the press. You are shown the silly side with her family. She helps her dad send out a tweet and work Twitter. She gives her brothers a hard time. She goes to school and stresses out over the home work she misses when she is in Africa helping build schools. It is an interesting view on an important figure in the world today. Her message is beautifully shared with the audience and left feeling better about the world because Malala was going to fight the good fight and try and make it a better place for my son.

As part of this sneak peek, I had the unique opportunity to be part of a phone call with Malala Yousafzai the other day. A student submitted some questions and one of them was chosen. My student.

Shannon M asked, "What is the most significant way being Muslim has impacted your activism?"

This was such an awesome question from one of our student journalists. People of her own faith have vowed to silence and tried when they shot her. Her response was wonderful.

Malala said that being Muslim is just like any other religion. It means peace, community, loving each other, taking care of each other. Its part of my life to be kind to others, to be peaceful to others, to offer forgiveness. To her, this is what Islam is about.

She takes these beliefs and focuses on helping children all over the world with The Malala Fund.

The Malala fund is set up to provide quality education for girls all over the world. She says that secondary education is the basic human right of every girl. She will not stop until every girl can go to school. I get chills when I think about her and her work. She is making a difference.

I want to let all of you know that you should make time to see this documentary with your family and your students. Do what you can to book a field trip and share Malala's story with them. Malala needs everyone to come together to ensure that girls everywhere receive the same education as their male counterparts. She has chosen to stand up and speak up? Will you join her?